Oklahoma’s New Abortion Law Not OK, Say Critics

Posted on Oct 18, 2009

A new Oklahoma law, effective Nov. 1, will require women seeking abortions to reveal personal information such as marital status, number of children and race—all of which will be posted online. Critics say that the intent is intimidation.

The Guardian:

Women seeking abortions in Oklahoma are to be forced to reveal an array of personal information, such as the state of their relationships, how many children they have and their race, which will be posted on an official website.

Abortion rights groups say the new law is intended to intimidate women because, although it does not require them to reveal their names, other information to be made public will sometimes be enough to identify them.

The move, which takes effect on 1 November, comes after a judge struck down a law that would have forced women to undergo an ultrasound and to listen to a doctor’s description of the embryo or foetus before a termination.

[...] Doctors face prosecution and loss of their medical licences for failing to provide the state with the required information.